The Hicks family hasn't gotten everyone together since mom's funeral and my dad decided he wanted a family reunion. So today we gathered out at the place we grew up at which is where my dad still lives. We had a great time visiting and catching up on our lives since we last saw one another and even though we missed having mom be with us everyone found happiness in the day. Many of us has had traumatic things happen in our lives over the past few years but each of us has many blessings to be thankful for. My dad asked God's blessing upon us and then it was time to eat...
Food is always a big part of any reunion and ours was no exception. The best part to me was my dad's catfish fried outside under the gazebo.
Cousins that don't get to see each other much had a great time playing with each other. Now is a good time to instill the belief that family ties are strong and love for one another is never ending, We must teach our children families are not something we throw away. We may not be perfect but we have something in common and that is we all came from the same lineage. Good, bad and ugly--we are family forever...
Glad Justin isn't too big to show his momma how much he loves her. It's a good thing to teach our children to not only tell one another they love them but to show it.
We took pictures of my mom and dad's grand kids and great-grand kids along the barn wall. This barn has been here since I was a child and it has seen many kids playing at it's feet. When I was little I would sit on the concrete step and crack walnuts and eat them. It seemed like such a large barn when I was small but seems to have shrunk over the years. Another sign I am getting older I see.
Years ago my dad and mom lined their grandchildren up and took their picture along this same barn. Today we not only lined those original grand kids up but added an additional generation to the mix. This pic is of that generation. It is a good reminder to us that time waits on no man and to enjoy our children while they are young cause they grow up way too fast and have children of their own.
And here's some of the original grand kids whose names have been carved into the concrete wall behind the old barn. This is the generation that is following after us and will go out and make their mark in the world. And the generation that will some day be taking care of us their parents. Hope we have done a good job instilling Godly values in each of them. And may each of their lives be full of blessings!
And here's the youngest of the clan I do believe. Gracie has already learned there is something special about little ones feet hasn't she? And big brother seems to think his baby brother is pretty special...
Frying catfish on the outdoor deep-fryer on this perfect Fall day...
The older generation taking time to chat with the younger generation about life I am sure.
And grandparents spending some time loving on their grandchildren.
Nothing beats sitting in the shade while a gentle breeze blows laughing with one another.
This reminded me of how my mom loved letting babies chew on her chin. Carol and her grand baby are carrying on the tradition I guess you could call it. I'm sure mom was smiling down from heaven at this sight.
I noticed the boys seemed to love playing in the dirt. Sometimes learning to play with the simple toys is the best. I remember playing in the dirt out in the road when I was a kid building roads and tunnels for my stick cars to drive down. And those kind of toys don't cost a thing!
Are these boys cool dudes or what?
Little Gracie calls all us girls Nana maybe cause she can't remember our names and we all look like Grandmas. Does my heart good to hear her call me Nana and come running to the car with the too big shirt she had found to wear flapping in the breeze behind her as she runs to meet me.
I like this picture best of all. Gracie's little brother Trooper is such a delight. And she is such a good big sister too. Hope she always loves her baby brother as much as she does now.
Hope you enjoyed my Hicks Family Reunion pictures. And hope you too have a love for geneology and a desire to learn as much as you can about the ancestors that have went on before you. What was their life like? What kind of trials and disappointments and tramatic things did they have to walk through in their lives? Did it bring them closer together or tear them apart? I enjoy visiting with my dad and my dad's only living sibling about their lives. And I listen closely because they will both be gone someday and I will be the only one that will be able to answer the questions my children and grandchildren will someday be asking me about their relatives that are no longer with us. I am a family oriented person and proud of it and hope you are too! And if you are not now is a good time to become that kind of person with your own family!
Not everyone could make it to this family reunion but we certainly did have a good sized crowd. We'll do it again and maybe even make it a family tradition!
